REHOBOTH BEACH — Riding on a wave of success in 2020, the Ocean City, Md.-based hospitality company Real Hospitality Group (RHG) announced it has assumed management of the newly built Residence Inn Rehoboth Beach.
The 104-room hotel near Rehoboth Beach opened its doors Dec. 17 off John J. Williams Highway near the intersection with Route 1. While the property is still owned by Hudson Management of Milton, RHG will serve as a third-party management firm to oversee the day-to-day operations. This also marks the second Hudson Management hotel to sign on with RHG, after the Fairfield Inn & Suites Rehoboth Beach.
“RHG enjoys a long and trusted relationship with Christian and Jamin Hudson,” RHG President and CEO Ben Seidel said in a press statement. “We’re honored to add their second hotel to our managed portfolio of properties in 16 states across the United States.”
RHG is an international hospitality management and investment company with a portfolio with more than 106 hotels. Clients range from leading brands like Hilton Worldwide Holdings, Marriott International, Hyatt Hotels Corporation, as well as luxury independent hotels MADE and Boro Hotel, recognized as two of Condé Nast’s best New York City lodging establishments, and more.
Despite the pandemic’s hit to the hospitality industry, RHG continued to expand its portfolio in 2020. The Residence Inn Rehoboth Beach signals the third hotel that came in the RHG fold last year. Fenwick Shores by Hilton, a 65-room hotel, and the 110-room Home2Suites Lewes both signed on with the group. In total, RHG added 1,730 rooms across the country last year.
RHG has additional offices in New York City, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Shanghai, China. But since it opened the doors on its headquarters in Ocean City about a decade ago, the hospitality group has been able to grow organically within the region.
“When we first started, Ben [Seidel] would be in New York on business and take the Amtrak back down. It was about eight years ago, he started thinking as he drove by these beautiful Wilmington hotels, ‘Why aren’t we working with these guys?’” RHG Senior Vice President of Operations Ron Loman told the Delaware Business Times.
The Fairfield Inn’s success, especially with extended five-night stay programs, caught RHG’s interest in investing further with Hudson Management, Loman added. He noted that while the traditional high-booking weeks of June and July were sluggish, RHG saw upward of 80% higher bookings at its hotels in Ocean City, Rehoboth Beach, Fenwick and Bethany Beach in September than before.
The Residence Inn Rehoboth Beach features suites-only accommodations and is one of the few pet-friendly hotels in the resort area. The hotel offers complimentary high-speed internet, a state-of-the-art fitness center, a 24-hour market, as well as a longue area that serves small plates.
Looking to the future, Loman hinted that RGH is working on a future deal with another Delaware hotelier, but he said it’s too early to share more details.
